Charter School Students, BoE Move Into Demarest School for 2012-2013 Year

Students of two of Hoboken’s charter schools as well as the administrative offices of the Board of Education are scheduled to occupy the Demarest School on Fourth Street in the upcoming school year. 

The high school students from the Hoboken Charter School will use the fourth floor; Elysian charter schools I housing six classes on the third floor and eight classrooms on the first floor will be used by the district’s pre-school program.

On the second floor, the Board of Education employees are using some old classrooms as their offices. Previously, the Hoboken Board of Education was located in the Wallace School.

The charter schools are renting the space from the district and are paying rent, which is a source of income for the district.

Renovations at the building are expected to be done at the start of the 2012/2013 school year, said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Mark Toback during a recent tour of the building.

About 24 BoE employees, 90 Hoboken Charter School students, 100 Elysian students and approximately 120 pre-schoolers will use the building, starting this academic year, according to Toback.

The move of the board employees and the pre-schoolers frees up space at the Wallace School, in which they have been taught for the last few years.

While the building is being renovated, and most classrooms will be in use, to update the building to modern standards and use it as a Hoboken public school is virtually impossible, because the building does not meet current standards.

A large auditorium spans two floors in the middle of the building. While a large space, it is currently not in use, because the balcony railing is not up to current code. Many of the bathrooms in the buildings are located in awkward locations and are not handicap accessible, also not in compliance with current standards.

The school doesn’t have a cafeteria and the school’s gym doesn’t have any locker rooms.

The Demarest School building was last used as a Hoboken public school about 15 years ago.

Ten years ago, a study showed that renovations to the Demarest School—to have it be a full functioning school again—would cost $33 million. That amount has only increased since then.

The school district has currently invested roughly $350,000 in renovations to the building, Toback said, so that it can be used to house the charter school and pre-school students.

Toback said he is happy about the move of his office to the midtown location.